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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsBeing overweight reduces dementia risk
The team at Oxon Epidemiology and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine analysed medical records from 1,958,191 people aged 55, on average, for up to two decades.
Their most conservative analysis showed underweight people had a 39% greater risk of dementia compared with being a healthy weight.
But those who were overweight had an 18% reduction in dementia - and the figure was 24% for the obese.
"Yes, it is a surprise," said lead researcher Dr Nawab Qizilbash.
He told the BBC News website: "The controversial side is the observation that overweight and obese people have a lower risk of dementia than people with a normal, healthy body mass index.
"That's contrary to most if not all studies that have been done, but if you collect them all together our study overwhelms them in terms of size and precision."
More at link.
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-32233571
I never would have guessed
LittleBlue
(10,362 posts)Erich Bloodaxe BSN
(14,733 posts)Just had my first gout attack a couple of months back, and the one silver lining there was that people with gout are at reduced risk of Alzheimers.
kath
(10,565 posts)Hekate
(90,865 posts)Moderation in all things, then.
malaise
(269,219 posts)yeoman6987
(14,449 posts)Nourish the brain with food. I could stand to lose a few but this story is wonderful actually. Skinny people at times don't norish the body enough with the right amount of food. Not every single one.
Of course overweight people have other issues to watch out for.
OregonBlue
(7,755 posts)The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,900 posts)or where I left my car keys. Something's gonna get us all eventually - but I'd rather it was quick.
Marr
(20,317 posts)Are they defining eating disorders as dementia? Do people suffering from dementia tend to under eat because of their dementia?
Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin
(108,304 posts)eridani
(51,907 posts)Being genetically insulin resistant causes both type II diabetes and weight gain in adulthood.
Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin
(108,304 posts)I was 270 pounds with type 2. After dropping 90 pounds my A1CH levels dropped to normal.
eridani
(51,907 posts)--is reduction of caloric intake. Even when this does not result in any weight loss at all, blood sugar improves. There is zero correlation of amount of weight lost and sugar control improvement.
If you have a frayed macrame plant hanger that you only use with plastic flower pots, the hanger will not break. This does not mean that you have fixed the hanger--only that you have successfully avoided stressing a weak system.
Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin
(108,304 posts)I think I'll trust my doctor and my own experience more.
eridani
(51,907 posts)--support of one over the other.
Calorie reduction ---> weight loss---> improved sugar control
or
Calorie reduction ---> improved sugar control
and also Calorie reduction ---> weight loss
You say that the first explanation is correct. On what grounds do you or your doctor dismiss the second?
Omaha Steve
(99,780 posts)I'm not putting a lot of weight behind this yet.
Kalidurga
(14,177 posts)People over 50 who are overweight (slightly) do better when they get sick. I think it's because they can afford to lose a few pounds and people who are at or below their "ideal" weight are more at risk of becoming underweight or severely unweight.
progree
(10,924 posts)...Underweight people had a 34 percent higher risk of developing dementia than those of a normal weight, the study found, while the very obese had a 29 percent lower risk of becoming forgetful and confused and showing other signs of senility.
...The most recent study, published in Lancet, appears to contradict one conducted as recently as 2008. In that one, obese people in their 40s were much more likely to get Alzheimers and other forms of dementia in their 70s, the Post said.
The lead researcher noted, however, that if youre obese, youll probably die before the time when youre most likely to exhibit dementia.
JI7
(89,279 posts)And less on physical . Things that can take a lot of time and involve a lot of thought. But not much movement
lame54
(35,331 posts)bemildred
(90,061 posts)If one must be skinny, one must have a high fat diet. I like dairy myself, but that won't work for everybody.
And your nerves elsewhere in your body like fat too.